


Coming Home

by Im_The_Doctor (Bofur1)



Series: The Pacemakers [36]
Category: Transformers Generation One
Genre: Angst and Tragedy, Canonical Character Death, Goodbyes, Grief/Mourning, Lack of Communication, Late Night Conversations, Loneliness, Multi, Pace-Mates, Pack Dynamics, Sadness, Separations, Sleep Deprivation, Tenderness, This is a Huffer story so it's obviously not going to be happy, Transformers: The Movie (1986)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-26
Updated: 2015-09-26
Packaged: 2018-04-23 13:19:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4878382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bofur1/pseuds/Im_The_Doctor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"You know your job," Brawn hissed vehemently. "Take care of them."<br/>"We need you here," Huffer answered in the same tone.<br/>"I <em>am</em> here."</p><p>Those were the last words spoken between Huffer and his closest friend, but as cryptic as they are, nothing is as cryptic as what the future holds.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Coming Home

**Author's Note:**

> Pace - A company or herd of mules; in my headcanon, a family of Minibots; also a traditional expectation and an honor among Minibots who form one
> 
> One - the first Minibot to agree to join the proposer's pace
> 
> Culumexian - the form of Cybertronian spoken by residents of Culumex, the Minibot city on Cybertron

Huffer moved tentatively down one of the many halls of the Autobot City, his shoulders hunched in and optics flickering around nervously. This wasn’t a new sight to those who passed, so no one bothered to ask him what the matter was. They suspected that he would simply wail, “Everything!”

No, there was only one problem fixed in Huffer’s mind at the moment: he had never quite gotten used to being in a city-former. At any moment Metroplex could transform and crush all the Bots inside him without warning.

If he wanted to be on time for his engagement, however, he had to suppress those thoughts and hurry.

The berthroom he’d been assigned was…small, set up only for one. Huffer sighed softly as he keyed it open and shuffled into the dark, shuttering his optics and hugging his arms against his chest, imagining what he now considered ‘better days’—the days when he and his pace were inseparable. Now Bumblebee was a liaison to the flesh creatures (Humans, he corrected himself. He’d never gotten used to them either.), Windcharger was an errand-runner between Kup’s office and Wheeljack’s lab, Gears and Cliffjumper had been assigned to Primus-knew-what, and Brawn…Brawn was on one of Cybertron’s moons.

Huffer pursed his lips as he recalled Brawn’s departure.

Bee had stared at the ground for a while—then he’d lunged and hugged him until Brawn peeled him off, complaining about mushiness.

Cliffjumper had given him an extra rifle, forced a grin that to anyone else could have hidden his sadness, and requested, “Slag some Decepticons in my name, will ya?”

Brawn had just laughed as Gears butted in, shoving the rifle out of his way so he could clasp Brawn’s hand and upper arm and threaten him with something or another if he didn’t visit soon.

Windcharger had bounded out of their pace line and came to stand next to Brawn, taking a picture with him. The good idea dawned on the others, so Huffer had to wait while each holopic was snapped. For once he didn’t mind; anything to keep Brawn with them for a few kliks longer.

Finally, his pace-leader, One and closest friend approached. He wasn’t smiling anymore, Huffer realized, and that sucked away any thought he’d had about trying a smile of his own. For a minute they just stared at each other. Then Brawn sighed.

“See what Bee’s done?” he muttered, giving up and pulling Huffer into a hug that nearly swallowed him.

He hadn’t done this in…centuries. Not since the last time Huffer took a life. “Brawn—” he whispered in anguish, optics wide and welling with coolant.

Slipping out of human speech into Culumexian, Brawn hissed vehemently, **::You know your job, One. Take care of them.::**

 **::We need you here,::** Huffer responded in the same tone and dialect.

 **::I _am_ here.::** With that cryptic phrase, Brawn released him, holding onto his right shoulder just long enough to tap their chamfrons together. “Pace pic now,” he ordered, “and email it to my new address!”

Huffer had taken the cue as their pace-mates crowded in, had swallowed his tears and smiled—for the last time since Brawn had left.

Snuffling quietly, he made his way to the comm. system set up in his room, sinking down in front of it and willing the dark screen to light up. Brawn had promised that once they got the communications array set up on Cybertron, he would call. Somewhere around three in the morning, Moonbase time, he had guesstimated.

So every morning, when he was certain Earth time had synced with Moonbase time, he sat here and waited. And when the call didn’t come, he stifled tears and went about his miserable day. The expanse of space between Earth and their home planet had never seemed longer.

Huffer waited another week, depriving himself of recharge for the one hope he wouldn’t give up. By now Windcharger had noticed and occasionally came to join him since the others were too busy with their duties. It was just a fraction better with someone there to put an arm around Huffer’s shoulders when they were disappointed yet again.

Then one day, August 6th of Earth year 2005, when Windcharger was pacing and Huffer was just starting to doze off where he sat…the screen lit up.

“ _Incoming transmission: Cybertron Moonbase #1_ ,” the comm. system announced.

Startled, Huffer flailed in his chair for the button that would take the call, but Windcharger miraculously got there first.

“Brawn!” Windcharger cried eagerly right in Huffer’s audial, but he didn’t even wince, leaning forward with intense focus.

“Hey…what’s wrong with this camera thing?” they heard the staticky grumble, followed by a clatter of unknown objects and a muttered obscenity that, in this instance, only made them smile.

Finally the visual caught up with the audio and Huffer drew in his vents when the blurry image focused on their leader. Brawn grinned broadly in greeting.

“Charger, Huffer! How’ve you been?”

“How have _you_ been?!” Windcharger shot back.

“Mostly on duty,” Brawn replied, rolling his optics. “It’s been a drag, but they gave me a break for my shoulder and I decided to call.”

Huffer internally cursed the Decepticons and the multiple times Brawn had returned to the _Ark_ with the rotator cup in his left shoulder dislocated. The injury from the fight over Nightbird had never quite healed, making that shoulder vulnerable.

“Is it doing better?” he asked hesitantly.

“Yeah, I’ll be going on another shift soon,” Brawn replied.

Windcharger scowled. “Well, take your time with us, since it took you so long to call! We were just about ready to fly to the moon ourselves!”

“Well, then, I got good news for you,” Brawn laughed, leaning back in his chair and looking thoroughly pleased with himself. “Prime’s ordered a shuttle to pop by Autobot City; it should get there in about two days.”

Huffer cut in, trying to mask the desperation in his tones. “What are you saying, Brawn? You’re…coming home?”

Brawn paused, his smile changing to something rather undecipherable. “Yeah,” he confirmed at last. “I’m comin’ home.”

They discussed the shuttle’s arrival and the preparations to be made until Perceptor knocked and stuck his helm into the room. “Windcharger? It’s taken me ages to hunt you down…Kup is ranting about your commitment to your duty.”

“Scrap,” Windcharger cursed mildly, bidding a quick goodbye to Brawn before scrambling past Perceptor out of sight. Perceptor nodded to Huffer and also took his leave.

“Never answered my question,” Brawn said lightly once Huffer’s door slid closed. “How have you been?”

Huffer gulped. “Terrible,” he confessed in a low voice. “I miss you.”

“Just two more days, buddy,” Brawn encouraged, leaning in so his face filled almost the entire screen.

“Two more days and you’re coming home,” Huffer agreed with a quivery smile. Brawn blinked, that unreadable expression resurfacing. “What?” Huffer prompted, feeling as though he were missing some hidden joke.

“You did it again,” Brawn answered unhelpfully, his voice brimming with—pride?

“Did what?”

“You called Earth ‘home’.”

Incredulous, Huffer opened his mouth to protest and then hesitated. “Well, it will be when you get here,” he concluded.

Brawn hummed his agreement and then his optics drifted in the direction of what Huffer suspected was the timestamp on his monitor. “I have a shift in a few minutes, Huff. I should go.”

Huffer inconspicuously wiped at his optics and looked away. “Okay…”

“Hey.” Recapturing his One’s gaze, Brawn repeated, “I’ll see you soon.”

Huffer nodded, managing to hold himself together until Brawn hung up. Afterwards he pulled his knees onto the seat of the chair and hid his face in them, sobbing and unsure of why. However, once he’d been spent, he lifted his helm and realized that this was one of the first times in his life where he couldn’t find a complaint to voice. Exhausted but somehow relieved, he stumbled to his berth and recharged, unafraid of any sudden city-former transformations.

In two days’ time, he would see his closest friend again, though not how he expected.

He didn’t know that, in two days’ time, the Decepticons would attack and Brawn’s bad shoulder, what they had thought was so little a thing, would be his downfall. The shuttle would fall to the forest, never quite reaching its destination.

He didn’t know that Windcharger would stay fastened to Wheeljack’s side, not even attempting to escape the explosion fatal to them both, though some would suspect he could have escaped if he wasn’t so duty-bound, if he were a lesser mech.

Little did he know that he would be lost as well, but he wouldn’t be quite sure how. In his last few kliks of life, he would be blind with grief and rage and fear. Somewhere along the line he would think that perhaps Earth was just a pit stop on their way home—all transformers’ ultimate home.

But nevertheless, in two days’ time, in the Allspark, he would see his closest friend again…and they would wait for the others.

 

 


End file.
